Trouble in Yoshiwara
by Traldor
Summary: There have been murders in Yoshiwara and somehow Gin is involved. Tsukuyo asks him for advice.
1. Chapter 1

In the cloudless, moonless night in Yoshiwara, with only dim street lamps to light the dark, empty streets, a man and a woman walked, arm in arm. The woman was severely drunk. Often, she stumbled over her own feet with only the arm of the man, which she was grasping, to keep her from falling. She would giggled each time, loudly to herself, at her own clumsiness. The man himself didn't show any signs of intoxication and had a grin on his face as he watched the girl make a fool of herself.

The man led her further down the empty street and steered her down an unlit alley. She followed without objection and just giggled again when she bumped into the building on her right because the alley was so narrow. In her drunken haze she wondered where they were going, but she thought that nothing was amiss because he had generously paid for the night. However this was one of the most unusual customers she had ever been with. Most paid by the hour but he had paid, upfront, for the whole night and then took her out drinking and dancing. There were only a few more hours until dawn and, other than when they were on the dance floor, he hadn't even touched her. The sound of his voice brought her out of her drunken musings.

"I hope that you enjoyed yourself tonight my dear," he said to her, stopping abruptly.

"Oh I had a great time lover boy," she answered him in a manner in which she thought was sexy but was nothing more than some stumbling movements and slurred speech. "Maybe now it's your turn for some fun."

Since he had stopped she assumed that this was where he wanted it. This was Yoshiwara and it was hardly the first time that a man had wanted her in an alley. Some didn't have the money for a proper room and others enjoyed the thrill of being out in public. Obviously this man had enough to afford a room so she guessed that he was an exhibitionist. She started to loosen the obi on her kimono as she backed away from him so that she could give him a bit of a show.

"Maybe this is what you want lover?" she asked as the kimono slid from her body. She stood naked in the alley with the only light, coming from a lantern at the alley's mouth, forming a silhouette of her body.

In the dark the man smiled. For a cheap whore she was pretty. "You are truly a beautiful creature." He told her as he walked towards her.

She reached up towards his face as he approached her. A look of surprise flashed on her quickly, sobering face as a dagger stuck in her throat. She tried to let out a scream but the dagger wouldn't let her. He whispered soothing words into her ear and lowered her to the ground, gently, as her arms flailed about uselessly. Soon the world was fading away and finally she laid still with her eyes staring deadly into space.

When the body was found in the morning by the Hyakka she still laid there, naked, with the dagger still lodged in her throat; her open eyes staring up toward the bright blue sky. Her kimono was gone, but her money was scattered on and all around her. Pinned up above her to the wall of the alley with another dagger was an envelope. Written in blood red letters on the envelope was the name GINTOKI.

.X.

The knocking at the door got louder and louder. It was mid morning and Gin was trying his best to stay asleep, but the unrelenting banging forced him to come to the realization that he was very much awake. Cursing under his breath, as he got up, he hoped that it wasn't Otose looking for more rent money and if the offender was a door to door salesman he was pretty sure that he was going to be arrested for murder today. Why did he have to give Kagura the day off today?

"I don't have any money for rent you old hag!" Gin yelled at the wooden sliding door as he approached it still wearing his pajamas.

He reached out and slammed the door open. Standing there was a sight much better than the more than slightly aged landlord, but only a bit less dangerous. Tall, for a woman, and only slightly shorter than Gin, she stood confidently wearing right sleeveless black kimono with an orange leaf pattern with a slit on the right side up to her hip. She smoked on a plain wooden kiseru with iron capped ends and her blond hair was tied up with a small pair of kunai. She was beautiful despite the pair of scars on her face. Gin recognized her immediately as Tsukuyo, the leader of the Hyakka from Yoshiwara.

"I'm sorry I don't want any Girl Scout cookies," Gin told her and promptly tried to close the door.

Tsukuyo reached out and grabbed the door stopping it from closing. "I'm not a Girl Scout," she responded seriously.

Struggling further to close the door he yelled, "I'm not interested in anything else you might be selling."

She raised her voice in response, "You know I don't sell anything including the thing that your dirty mind seems to think that I would sell and even if I did you couldn't afford me." To stop him from closing the door she got herself in the doorway and used both arms to keep it open.

"You're right. I can't afford to have you in my life. You should just leave. Leave and find someone else to ply your trade to." Gin lifted up his foot and pushed her out of the doorway and slammed the door shut.

"Gintoki," Tsukuyo yelled to be heard through the door. "I've got a letter for you!"

"If that is so then you should leave it in my shoe box like other girls," he answered sarcastically.

"It isn't a love letter. It's a message left by a killer with your name on it."

Gin opened his door again and took the proffered envelope. Sure enough written in red ink was his name. He turned the envelope over and found that it had already been opened. He looked up at her and she just looked back at him unabashed. He opened it and found it empty. It was just an envelope with his name written on it.

"Oi, where is the letter? What is the point of giving me an empty envelope? Are you just trying to mess with me or is this some new way to recruit customers?" He asked her with his voice filled with suspicion and shock.

"There was no letter. An empty envelope with your name on it was found at three different murders over the last three nights. All of them were courtesans, all three were found naked and all three were killed with a dagger shoved to the hilt into their throat," she explained.

"I'm sorry but Yorozuya Gin is closed today." Gin turned around to head back to his office, but left the door open. Tsukuyo took this to be an invitation to enter his apartment and followed him.

"All I have to offer you to drink is some strawberry milk. Shinpatchi usually makes tea but he took a sick day or something and it's too much of a pain." He said all of this with his back turned as he rummaged though his refrigerator.

She sat down on his couch comfortably with her legs stretching out on to the cushions. She refilled her kiseru and lit it. Tobacco smoke soon filled the air. "I don't need anything. I'm fine."

Gin brought a quart of strawberry milk back to his desk and sat down. "So tell me what you came to see me about."

"I thought that you might know the killer since he seems to know you. All I need for you to do is tell me who he is. After that we of the Hyakka will bring him to justice." Tsukuyo blew a ring of smoke into the air. "If you can identify him then I will be out of your hair."

"I can't identify someone from an empty envelope." Gin took a big swig from the carton of milk and then asked, "Are there any other details?"

"All three daggers are identical in design. All three of them have a silver pommel with silver inlay work on the hilt." She got up and walked to Gin's desk. She pulled one of the daggers out and placed it onto the table. "Also, although he took their kimonos, he left their money as if he carelessly threw it on them."

Gin finished the carton and threw it across the room into the trashcan. "None of this rings a bell to me. Sorry I can't help you. Now if you will excuse me I think the latest issue of Jump came out today. You don't have a few hundred yen I could borrow do you?"

"I had hoped that you would have known something. I am sorry to have wasted your time," she apologized. Tsukuyo turned to leave and Gin walked her to the door. "It was good to see you again. You should come down to Yoshiwara more often."

"I don't have that kind of money," he replied while picking the wax from his ears.

"Then keep the dagger. Maybe you'll be able to pawn it off or something. When you do, come and I will give you a good price."

Tsukuyo made her way down the stairs from his porch on the second floor, leaving Yorozuya without a backwards glance. Gin watched her go. After making sure that she was out of site he slid the door shut. He slowly made his way down the hall, back to his desk, deep in thought. He stood there for a moment and sighed as he reached out and picked up the dagger still there. He studied the blade for only a moment before he returned to his bedroom to get changed.

After donning his usual black shirt and pants Gin shrugged on his white kimono with blue wave patterns near the ankles and wrists. He removed his right arm from the sleeve and tied his kimono closed with a black obi and strapped a black belt to hold his bokuto with Lake Toya inscribed in kanji on the hilt. He returned back to his desk and picked up the dagger laying there and tucked it behind his back. It looked like he wasn't going to be able to relax today.

The Kabuki district was bustling as Gin made his way through the street. The voices of the venders hawking their wares could barely be heard over cacophony of people going about their business. People from many walks of life walked these streets. In this district a person could find a chance to hide from their past. It was by no means a place for the faint of heart but a person, with enough mettle, could start over with few to no questions asked. The man Gin was looking for was a man who excelled at evading the law and used the Kabuki district to his advantage in doing so. He was the leader of the Joi and went by the name of Katsura Kotaro.

Katsura, or Zura as he's known, stopped by Yorozuya often to attempt to convince Gin to join the Joi, his squad of rebels trying to throw the yoke of Amanto influence off of the necks of Edo and the rest of Japan. Just yesterday Zura paid him a visit. He felt it necessary to keep Gin up to date on his life and mentioned that he started to work at the Kammako Club, a well know tranny bar, to replenish the Joi's funds. Itwas for this reason that Gin knew where to look for the elusive man.

It wasn't long before Gin was standing at the entrance of the Kammako Club. He felt a little apprehension before going in. It wasn't the employees that bothered him per se. It had more to do with his memories of working there. Saigou, the owner of this establishment, forced him to work here to teach him a lesson in respect and while he didn't necessarily respect the tranny lifestyle he did respect Saigou and he doubly made sure to show it to huge tranny whenever they met.

Since it was early afternoon the bar was nearly void of customers. The few there were chatting jovially and drinking with a couple of the hostesses in a corner. One of the hostesses, Ayumi, greeted Gin as he entered.

"Welcome to the Kammako Club, Gin. What will be your pleasure," Ayumi asked him with a bow. Ayumi tried hard to be feminine but his face, especially his chin, had a very masculine look to it.

"Yo, Ayumi, I'm looking for Zura."

"Hmm, Perhaps you mean Zurako?" the hostess asked?

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he answered. "If you could just point me in the right direction..."

"Zurako's shift doesn't start for another twenty, or so, minutes but since it is you, I am sure she wouldn't mind you taking a peek in the dressing room."

"Uh, thanks," Gin said without much enthusiasm. He moved past Ayumi towards the back rooms that were normally off limits to the regular customers.

The locker room looked like most. There were lockers lining the back wall and backless benches formed two rows in the center of the room. However there were notable differences. There were mirrored makeup stations along the side walls and, also, the musky smell that was normally attributed to male locker rooms was mixed with cheap perfumes. It was also very messy with a mix of both male and female clothes and unmentionables sca

ttered on the floor and laying on the benches. Often the job of keeping the locker room clean fell to the new employees as a way of initiation.

Gin easily noticed Katsura at one of the makeup stations to his right. Katsura was dressed in a red lined, blue kimono that had an orange lotus blossom pattern. His yellow obi was tied with a red obijime with a small bow facing the front and his green obiage could clearly be seen from underneath his obi. He seemed to be placing the finishing touches to his glossy, long hair and makeup by applying a purple shade of lipstick to his lips.

"Oi, Zura, you really go all out. Perhaps your taste in clothes is changing. Have you started wearing matching panties and bra too? Huh?" the sarcasm dripped from Gin's voice.

"It is not Zura, it is Katsura," his automatic reply came as he stood up to face his old friend; ignoring everything else Gin had said. "It is rare that you come to see me, Gintoki. Have you changed your mind and come to join the Joi?"

"No no no no no no no no no no no," the siver haired man emphatically denied, "Though I did come here on business."

"Make it fast, Gintoki. My shift starts soon and this place wouldn't hire Elizabeth so I am the only one working. I can't afford to be fired. I told him not to wear so much makeup during the interview. He should have gone with a more natural look like I did."

"There is nothing natural about you," he replied. "I doubt it was just that thing's makeup that cost it the job. Regardless," Gin continued, "there have been some murders in Yoshiwara and the killer left an empty envelope with my name on it and this dagger." Gin pulled the ornate blade from his belt, showed it to Katsura and asked, "You recognize it, don't you?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Katsura looked at the silver hilt engraved dagger proffered by Gin. It did look familiar but he wanted to get a better look before jumping to any conclusions. The part time tranny reached out and took the blade from his friend's outstretched arm. He slowly turned it in his hands and studied the silver inlay very closely. Even to an untrained eye the design was well executed and it was obvious that it was worth quite a bit of money. The most prominent image was a stag, its horns branching onto the daggers hilt. He did indeed know who the owner of this dagger was.

"Gintoki, you know that I know very well who would own such a dagger," he answered as he returned the blade to the silver haired man. "You must have sought me out for more reason than this"

Gin took the dagger and tucked it behind his back into his belt. "Zura, this was found at the site of a murder and two more at two other identical murders. You're right. I came to you to help me find him."

"I do not believe that he would murder someone, Gintoki," Katsura gravely asserted.

"I'm not as optimistic as you. However, even if he's being set up, I need to talk to him." Gin sighed with resignation. "These murders seem to be troubling a certain prostitute ninja friend of mine."

"You have the weirdest friends," the man said with a flick of his long black hair.

"You have no idea Zura," he retorted with a sardonic grin.

"It is not Zura! It is Katsura! When will you learn my name?" Katsura crossed his arms over his chest. Dressed up as he was, instead of looking angry he looked more like he was pouting. Gin found that disturbing but decided to keep that to himself. "Very well, I will tell you where he is because I trust you, but he is one of the Joi's biggest financiers."

"Somehow I knew you kept in touch with him."

Katsura turned away from his long time friend, picked up a piece of scrap paper and scribbled on it. He didn't seem to have a pen handy, so he wrote the address in purple lipstick. He turned back to Gin and handed him the paper. Gin glanced down and had to bite his tongue to stop from making a comment about the lipstick. What concerned him more was that this address was clear across Edo and he cringed at the money that he would have to spend on gas for his moped. It was currently running on fumes and he had lost his last yen in pachiko yesterday.

"Oi, thanks, I owe you one," the silver haired samurai told his long time comrade as he turned and walked out the door, dismissively waving his hand. "Don't let any dirty old men feel you up Zurako-chan.

First Gin had to retrieve his scooter which was back at Yorozuya Gin-chan. He had left it there to save on gas but there was no way he was going to walk clear across Edo. By now the midday sun was overhead and the heat felt oppressive. Today would have been a great day to spend at home, sitting in his comfortable chair, with his feet up on his desk. All he wanted to do was to relax with the rotating fan streaming cool air on him while he read Shounen Jump. Why does this stuff keep happening to him?

It was by chance that Gin noticed a familiar site. It was a tall blond man with his hair slicked back dressed in a white jacket trimmed in gold that was left open in the front. Underneath the jacket he wore a white vest and pants also trimmed in gold. His dead fish eyes looked down on everything that crossed them and on the man's right eye sat a monocle. In his left hand he held a cell phone up to his ear as he walked, leaving his right arm free to be ready to pull the katana worn at his hip, or the gun he had hidden under his jacket, at a moment's notice. So far, Gin hoped, Sasaki Isaburo, the leader of the self proclaimed elite Mimawarigumi, had not noticed him.

The silver haired samurai quickly ducked into a nearby alley. Now was not the time to get mixed up in that crazy man's business. With a sigh of relief Gin watched Sasaki enter a popular bakery. It looked like the annoying cell phone freak didn't notice him and he was in the clear. Just as he was about to resume his journey back to Yorozuya Gin-chan, he heard a catchy tune coming from somewhere on his person. After patting himself down, he found a hidden cell phone_. _

_How did that get there?_ He thought. With a sigh of resignation Gin flipped open the accursed device. Sure enough there was a text message from the Mimawarigumi captain.

The first thing Gin saw was a crying emoticon that looked like something a school girl would come up with. He didn't even know that phones could make symbols like those. The message that followed read, _u r so mean Gin-tan, hiding from me like that_. Not two seconds went by when another message came in, _I'm buying doughnuts for Nobutasu, _and sure enough there was another weird emoticon of someone handing out doughnuts. Or was that coffee? Followed by text saying,_ U want some? _Before He was able to clear out the second message a third came in. It showed a person putting on a monocle. The only real text said, _txt me! _And that was followed by yet another emoticon of a joyous person holding their arms up in celebration.

_It never ceased to amaze me how many emoticons that man used_, Gin thought_. What was he; a fifteen year old girl chatting with her friends about who's the cutest boy in school?_

After throwing the cell phone on the ground and stomping it into an unrecognizable pile of circuits, Gin continued down the alley to avoid any further contact with Sasaki Isaburo. Moving through the back alleys of Kabuki District, however, proved to take a lot more time than Gin had hoped. Not to mention that there were a myriad of offensive smells that had him side stepping and dancing his way through the path to avoid their sources. Finally he made his way out of the alley just down the street from Yorozuya Gin-chan. After wiping a rank, indescribable substance from his boots he crossed the last leg back.

A familiar voice called from behind him, "Welcome back Gintoki."

Startled for a moment, Gin's hand was less than half way to his bokken before he was able to name the voice behind him. Trying to pass the movement off as nothing more than an awkward wave he turned to greet the woman standing behind him. Tsukuyo stood there with a knowing smirk and twinkle of the eye. The mirth she felt for startling the man before her was evident on her face. Seeing her stand there with such an open child like expression warmed his heart just a little. It wasn't long ago that such an expression would have been impossible for her.

"Oi, Tsuki-chan," he said sardonically. "I already have one ninja stalker. I don't need another."

Tsukuyo shot the samurai before her a dirty look, though, at the same time her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "I have far more important things to do than follow you around. Oh…and by the way don't call me something so cute."

"And yet here you are for the second time today." he continued with a sadistic grin, "Huh? Maybe you have a crush on me?"

"You know why I am here," the blond ninja said. Trying to calm down, she pulled her kiseru out from her kimono and took her time in lighting it. Bringing the iron tipped wooden pipe to her lips, she took a long drag. "What have you found out?"

Gin let out a loud sigh. "What a slave driver. I was just about to follow a lead. I just came back to get my moped."

The man with the dead fish eyes walked over to where he had his dependable moped parked. However no matter how dependable a vehicle is it will not run without any gas. After getting on he turned the key in the ignition and the engine came to life. But, before Gin could so much as blink, the motor sputtered and then died. He tried to turn the key again, but the engine would not turn over. It was official. He was out of gas.

"Having trouble there?" Tsukuyo asked him as she took another puff from her kiseru.

"Tsukuyo-sama, can you lend me a couple thousand yen for some fuel?"

"No. However I am willing to pay you two thousand yen to give me a ride to where ever it is that you are going," she answered as she pulled two one thousand yen bills from her kimono. She waved them enticingly at him.

Gin got up off the moped and walked up to his would be passenger. He held out his helmet to her, "Oi, as they say, 'safety first'. So put this on."

Giving Gin a steady look, Tsukuyo dumped her kiseru against the hand railing and tucked it away. Before taking the helmet, the female ninja removed the miniature kunai decorating her flaxen hair, and took down the bun tied on top of her head. She put her accessories up her left kimono sleeve and ran her fingers through her locks, shaking them loose. After taking the helmet from her ride she fastened it to her head.

"Let's go get this heap of junk fueled up," she said.

"Yes ma'am."

Walking side by side the two of them pushed the moped along the dirt street. A gust of wind caused dust to swirl in the air. Gin sneezed as the current of air blew past them. The weather recently had been really dry causing the packed earth to become loose. However it was better than walking during the monsoon. During the rainy season the dust didn't cause problems with allergies, however, the muddy streets made it much more difficult to travel.

Before long they reached Gengai's Machine Hall. The sounds of grinding gears and the striking of a hammer on metal rang through the streets. Many of the pedestrians had to cover their ears as they passed by. Out front Hiraga Gengai was toiling away. He was an old, mostly bald man who was missing not just a few front teeth. His graying hair was gathered in a topknot and also covering his face was a scraggly beard. Covering his eyes for protection was a pair of his trademark goggles. He wore a plain green work outfit with a black belt and pouch.

Gengai noticed the pair walk up from the corner of his eye and looked up. A big grin spread across his face, easily showing his many missing teeth. "Gin-no-ji! It's great to see you." He looked over appreciatively at the girl standing next to him and asked, "Who's the pretty lass you brought with you?"

"Whoa Gengai-jii! I would watch yourself if I were you. She's dangerous." Gin warned him.

"Hmm. The good ones always are," he said with a wry smile. "I see you come for some fuel. I hope you brought money with you this time."

Gin pulled out the two one thousand yen bills Tsukuyo gave him earlier and handed it to Gengai. "This should cover what I owe you and hopefully fill me up."

"Ooo Gin-no-gi, with this all is forgiven," the old man replied with a laugh.

After filling up his moped Gin swung his leg over and sat down, his weight sinking the ride slightly. He turned the key in the ignition and the scooter purred like a kitten, a kitten that needed an oil change soon. Looking back, he patted the seat behind him and gave the woman an inviting look. Hesitantly, she climbed onto the back of the vehicle. Not sure where to put her hands she hung them down to her sides.

"Oi, you may want to hold on," The man arrogantly told her.

"Hold on to what?" she asked him. "I've never ridden one of these before."

"Wrap your arms around me. I don't need you falling off and killing my insurance rates with your medical bills."

Tsukuyo tentatively wrapped her arms around the man in front of her. As she did she felt her heart start to beat harder than she could ever remember. Her face was feeling flush and the rest of her body felt like she was on fire with embarrassment. She was confused by these feelings that were flooding her. She only hoped that Gin wouldn't somehow notice. Surely he could hear her heart beating from this distance.

"Okay," Gin announced. "Let's go."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Gin, with Tsukuyo's arms wrapped around him, sped down the highway. The traffic was at a standstill, the road packed full of cars. It was nearing evening and the cloudy sky was rose colored from the setting sun in the west. This time of day it was impossible to get anywhere, however not on a moped. They weaved in and out of traffic like a snake through the reeds. Gin took pleasure in getting his passenger to grab on tighter on a few of the close calls.

"Gintoki, slow down! Where are we going?" Tsukuyo yelled in an attempt to be heard over the rush of air streaming past them.

The former samurai let off the accelerator and slowed to a more leisurely speed. "Eh? I thought maybe you'd want to go on a date in the city." Gin paused a moment before continuing. "I see no reason not to tell you. I will tell you of one of the darkest days when I fought in the Joi war."

.X.

The silence in the night was deafening. It was hard to believe that just minutes ago the chaotic cacophony of battle had just dominated the area. Gin and Katsura stood next to each other, their respective white and green haori billowing quietly in the wind, in the ruins of what was once a prosperous town. Most of the buildings were on fire and dead bodies of Amanto and the local villagers alike laid scattered everywhere. The ground was stained red with blood. This had been nothing more than a massacre. The rest of the Joi were looking for more survivors in all this mess.

Their Joi army had come upon the massacre when it had returned to the village for supplies. One of Sakamoto's merchant contacts lived here and helped them with their war efforts. The ensuing battle wasn't much of a fight. Gin, in a fit of righteous rage, flew into the Amanto with his katana drawn cutting down Amanto after Amanto before they even knew they were under attack. The Amanto had tried to hold off the furious attack of the Joi army but the battle barely lasted ten minutes before all of them were dead. Other than a few cuts and bruises the Joi army had achieved a complete victory.

Gin didn't feel victorious. How could he with all of the dead bodies of the villagers around him. He couldn't help but to feel the blood of each and every one of these people staining his hands so scarlet that it could never wash off. "Will this never end?" He whispered to himself.

Clustered together in front of him were the only survivors, five children in total. The oldest was the eldest son of Sakamoto's merchant contact. He stood tall with a look of rage. In his fist he still clutched a dagger drenched in Amanto blood, so tightly that his hand was turning white. After that was a pair of twins, a girl and a boy. The girl's face had a long gash running down her cheek. Her brother had his arms wrapped around her trying to stop her from crying. Right next to them was the young blacksmith apprentice. He couldn't have been more than twelve years old, but he was trying to comfort the eight year old girl next to him who had a vicious wound in her side that had been treated.

Walking up to Gin and Katsura was a man who, like his comrades, wore a haori, though his was blue. As he approached the pair the man was laughing, "Ahahahaha, Kintoki, this didn't seem to go well."

The man wore a helmet made of black leather that draped all the way down over his shoulders. Wrapping around his forehead, over the leather, a band of metal provided extra protection. His light grey kimono could be seen under the steel plated armor protecting his belly. His loose fitting grey pants were held up with a light grey obi. He wore black socks over his pants up to his knees and on his feet was a pair of wooden sandals. At his hip a katana was sheathed and though the man's face held an open, friendly expression, he moved with the grace of an experienced warrior.

"Eh? We have known each other long enough for you to know my name Tatsuma. Get it right dumbass," Gin growled at the man known as Tatsuma Sakamoto "Look around you and sense the mood. Wipe that stupid grin off your face."

Katsura placed his hand solemnly upon his comrade's shoulder. "Calm down Gintoki. Now is not the time to fight each other," he implored.

Gin shook the man's hand off him and shot him a dirty look. Katsura returned a look as steady as stone. For a moment they stared at each other before Gin looked away. "You're right, Zura."

"It is not Zura, It is Katsura. For someone worried about his own name you sure like to take liberties with other people's"

Ignoring his friend's complaints, Gin worked his way towards the children. He knelt down in front of the young crying girl and placed his hand on her head giving her a sympathetic pat. He looked over at the four other survivors until his gaze met that of the oldest boy's holding his dagger with a death grip. In the boy's eyes Gin saw the anger and despair that he had also felt not long ago when his master was put to death unjustly by the Bakufu. The boy had acquitted himself well during the fight. He had taken a few of them by surprise with that dagger of his. Gin personally saw him deal with a pig faced Amanto, who seemed to have been taking pleasure in cutting the twin girl's face and had caused the wound in the younger girl's side, with a deft stab to the kidneys.

"I'm sorry that we couldn't get here sooner," The white haired samurai gently apologized.

The merchant's son held Gin's gaze for a moment longer before dropping the blade in his hand to the ground with the tip stabbing the earth. The hilt was engraved in silver that depicted a stag and was streaked with Amanto blood from the fight. The boy's hand also had the engraving etched into his hand from the pressure of holding the dagger so tightly. He wearily sunk to the ground as the adrenalin left his body and exhaustion took over.

"Gintoki, what are we going to do with them?" Katsura asked as he joined his friend. "I would not feel right sending them to an orphanage."

"We shouldn't have to, Zura," Sakamoto butted in. "Young Kazuma here is old enough to take care over his family's business. Old man Kurosaki was asking me about anyone I could recommend as an apprentice in his smithy and I know Sanada here is very skilled for his age. The Saotome twins here are not much younger than Kazuma. However we should try to find a good home for this young lady right here." He pointed to the young girl Gin was consoling.

"I will take care of them, all of them," the boy named Kazuma unsteadily got to his feet and declared. "I will take over my father's business and I will make sure they can grow up and live happily. It is the least I can do since it is my family's fault this village was attacked. We helped to keep the Joi supplied. It's our fault that everyone is dead and that Saotome-chan and Koizumi-chan are hurt."

"Stop blaming yourself, Kazuma. It is not your fault or your family's," Katsura told the young man.

Kazuma was about to open his mouth when the boy, Saotome, blurted out at the Joi members, "You're right! It's your fault. If you were not fighting this war then this wouldn't have happened!"

"Stop it, Takaki! If they hadn't come then we'd all be dead," Kazuma admonished his friend.

"No, he's right. Kazuma is it?" Gin stood up and looked the young would-be merchant in the eyes. "But because I see what these Amanto are capable of I can't just stop. I want to protect this country but I can't even protect one village. So protect these four here. They are all the family you have left now."

"Ahahaha Kintoki, I am going to stay behind to help Kazuma-san here," Sakamoto told the man dressed in white as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's a good thing you followed your hunch and brought us back here. What tipped you off?"

Gin turned away from everyone and softly said, "The birds. They were acting weird. I just wish we could have saved more of them." He looked up at the cloudy night sky and with a guilty sigh continued. "Let's properly take care of the dead."

.X.

Tsukuyo had listened in silence while Gin told the story. He didn't talk about his past very often. "So do you know what happened to them after?" she asked him.

"After we took care of the bodies, Tatsuma stayed behind and helped those five get moved to Edo and used his contacts to get Ryuu Kazuma set up to take over his father's business. Kazuma still supported the Joi for the rest of the war and, according to Zura, he still does." Gin paused a moment before continuing, his voice sounded strained. "Riri Koizumi didn't survive her wounds. I don't know about the others."

They rode for a while with neither of them saying anything. Gin took a turn off of the highway and pulled over to recheck the address that was given to him by Katsura. They were in a nice part of town. Unlike the Kabuki District the streets here were paved and were kept free of litter. The homes, on this street, were all gated compounds and most of them had guards that were keeping a close watch on the obvious intruders sitting on the old moped.

Tsukuyo looked over Gin's shoulder to see what he was reading. "I..is that purple lipstick?" she asked him with and edge to her voice. "You said you were talking to your contact, but weren't you really just out playing with women? Is that the address to a stripper bar? Gintoki, we don't have time for this."

The accused womanizer turned to look at his accuser ready to give a snide comeback. However when he got a look of her face he could only give a look of astonishment. She was totally serious here. Her arms were crossed over her chest, her brow was creased and her lips were downturned. The normal composed and cool headed Tsukuyo was nowhere to be found. Just what did that woman think of him?

"Oi, stupid, I got this from Zura. I got this address from that idiot cross dressing freak. Like I said, Zura told me Kazuma still helped him out," Gin shouted at his upset passenger. "Do you think I would take you with me to a stripper bar? Dumbass!"

Tsukuyo started to flush pink. "Well how was I supposed to know that? I can't read minds. Why do you have such weird friends?"

A minute later they were standing on the sidewalk with Tsukuyo's helmet thrown on the ground, and her hair in disarray. They were waving their arms at each other and shouting at the tops of their lungs. The people passing by just kept their heads down and pretended to not see them. Finally the security guard from the house they had stopped in front of had had enough. He had watched them closely since they have arrived and it was time for them to be on their way.

"Hey, you two, have your lovers spat somewhere else. Move along," he admonished them.

"Stupid, pick up your helmet and let's get this day over with," Gin told her as he climbed back up on the scooter.

Tsukuyo bent over to pick up the helmet, strapped it back on her head, and muttered to herself. _Why did this man get under my skin so easily? When was the last time I got into an argument like that? _Still embarrassed with herself she got back on Gin's moped and wrapped her arms around him once again to hold on. The white haired man turned the key in the ignition and, after double-checking the address, they sped down the street.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Gin and Tsukuyo pulled up to the front gate that matched the address Katsura gave them. Like many of the other buildings in this district a stone wall surrounded its premises. The front gate was impressively made of a stout wood that arched to twelve feet tall and was wide enough to fit a horse and carriage through. It was currently closed. Next to it a regular sized door for normal traffic was being guarded by a security guard.

The guard standing there was a tall man that looked to be in his late thirties. He wore a black suit and tie over a white collared shirt. His short brown hair, though untidy, and his scraggly goatee somehow fit his image. The most striking thing about the man was his sunglasses. His dark trapezoidal shaped lenses seemed to contain almost all of the essence of the man. He was a well know friend of Gin's and his name was Taizou Hasegawa.

When Hasegawa noticed Gin pull up to the gate he gave a wide grin and waved eagerly. "Gin-san, I haven't seen you in a while," he said excitedly.

Gin dismounted his moped and walked towards his gambling buddy. Tsukuyo followed him and stood silently behind him while they talked. "Oi, Hasegawa, I see you got yourself another job," Gin cheerfully responded. "I was wonder why I hadn't seen you are the pachinko parlors recently."

The newly employed security guard laughed embarrassedly while rubbing the back of his neck. "I really think that this time I have turned my life back around. I was even thinking of contacting Hatsu soon. So what brings you here and with this pretty lady from Yoshiwara no less? Isn't she too far out of your price range?" he asked his friend.

"Ehehe," Gin laughed nervously. "I happen to be working for her."

"Gin-san! I didn't realize you were so hard up for cash, but you shouldn't sell you body like that. Have some self respect," he pleaded.

"Eh? I'm helping her solve a murder here," The silver haired man angrily retorted and then quietly mused "Although her tits did feel pretty nice…"

A kunai zipped by Gin's head, nicking his ear in the process. A small trickle of blood fell down his face as he stood in horror looking at the small thrown weapon stuck into the wooden gate embedded almost three inches deep. Stiffly he turned around to see Tsukuyo calmly smoking her kiseru. The helmet she had been wearing was sitting on the seat of his moped and she had already restyled her hair. Her calm expression belied the cold fury that Gin knew was bubbling underneath.

"Um…excuse me," Hasegawa interrupted the silence. Trying to change the subject he asked, "Did you say something about a murder?"

Unable to take his eyes from his employer for fear of death Gin continued. "Ah yes. I knew Kazuma from back during the war and we just had a few questions for him," he said uneasily.

"My relief is about to get here so why don't I bring you in. You will have to speak to his right hand man first before you will be able to speak with Kazuma-san," the security guard explained.

Not a moment after Hasegawa stopped talking the pedestrian door opened and out walked his relief. The figure stood almost six feet tall. He also had a pair of sunglasses that looked identical to those that Hasegawa was wearing only much bigger to fit his wide avian face. Under his beak where his chin should have been a goatee was drawn on. His uniform consisted of a lone black clip-on tie. Gin instantly recognized him as Elizabeth, Katsura's Joi partner.

The giant anthropomorphic duck held up a sign. **I am here to relieve you, Madao-san.**

"Ah, thanks Elizabeth-san. I am going to escort these visitors inside," Hasegawa told his relief while rubbing the back of his neck.

Elizabeth nodded in response and took his position in front of the door. He stood motionless, his arms held down to his sides and his sunglasses covered eyes seemed to miss nothing has he stared ahead. The gusts of wind blew his tie around, and also caused his hairy legs appear as his skin rippled up like a white sheet. His stoic look was only ruined by how ridiculous a humanoid, white bird as a security guard appeared.

Hasegawa led Gin and Tsukuyo through the door and past the gate. The grounds between the gate and the house were well maintained. The grass was a vibrant green and looked like it was tended to daily. A gardener was working on the bushes with a pair of shears, keeping them neatly trimmed with almost unnoticeable cuts. A bamboo fountain easily drew attention with a loud thunk at periodic intervals after the water drained out, to the koi pond with a small bridge, where one could view the koi as they fed them.

The main building of the compound was built in a classic Japanese style with a grey angled roof and a front porch at the main entrance. The walls of the house were a dark brown with a white trim at the top. A wide path big enough for a cart branched off to the right as you came in towards a supply shed that connected to the main house with an open causeway with the same high angled roof as the main house. The whole drive was paved with large, smooth stones that were fit closely together.

Hasegawa led them around to a side entrance that seemed to be meant for employees. They followed their escort as he brought them through the kitchen and then into the main entry way. Though the outside of the house was very traditional, the inside had a very modern look to it. There were paintings and sculptures probably from countries and planets that Gin was sure he had never heard of. In the waiting room adjoining the entry way there were also state-of-the-art electronics that included a TV bigger than he had ever seen and a computer.

One of the doors of a double door at the far end of the entry way opened and a young man walked through it. He was tall and wore a western-style black suit and tie. His shoes were brightly polished and clicked loudly on the floor as he walked towards them. His black hair was parted in the middle and framed his face just past his jaw line. His narrow eyes that quickly scanned the room upon entering seemed to miss nothing. At his right hip he wore a katana and a wakasashi, and he walked with a grace that betrayed his proficiency at using them.

"Ah, Saotome-san, this pair has important business with Kazuma-san," Hasegawa told the man with an awkward bow.

Saotome replied in a stern voice, "Hasegawa-san, do these people have an appointment? I think not, because right now Kazuma-san in entertaining some important guests integral to the future of Kayu Inc. It is your job to keep uninvited and unwanted people out. Now tell me what was so pressing that these two couldn't wait to schedule a proper appointment?"

"I am sorry Saotome-san. They said they found a dagger that they believed belonged to Kazuma-san at the site of a murder and they wanted to ask him some questions," the man in sunglasses said in a shaky voice.

"And you believed them?" the man said credulously. "This is unacceptable, Hasegawa-san. It is your job to keep people like them out. Not to invite them in on your whim. You are hereby terminated. Your services will no longer be necessary. Get out of here."

With his shoulder slumped and his head down the now unemployed man slinked away. A soft sob could be heard as he left the room and after that there was nothing but silence. The young, narrow-eyed man took a moment to appraise the two unwanted guests. Gin didn't like the direction that these events led to. He felt bad that he got Hasegawa fired and it looked like it would be harder than he thought to see Ryuu Kazuma. The man in front of him, Takaki Saotome, didn't look like he was going to be much help either. It seemed the years did little to help his disposition.

After a moment Saotome said quietly with contempt, "So after all these years the infamous Shiroyasha show himself once again. Ruining our lives once wasn't enough for you? Now you want to pin some murder on Ryuu?" He looked like he was ready to pounce into action at any moment.

"No, no, no, no, no, no! You got it all wrong," Gin replied. "Of course I recognize the design on the dagger as the crest of the Kazuma family. We just wanted to ask if he knew anything about it. Right, Tsukuyo?" The silver haired man was trying hard to make this work out amiably. Tsukuyo flashed Gin with a dark look.

"Let me see this dagger." Saotome ordered.

Wordlessly Gin reached behind his back and pulled the silver blade from his belt. With a slight flourish he spun the dagger in his hand so that he was holding onto the blade and held it out to the man opposite him. The man quickly walked up to Gin, reached out and took the offered dagger. A look of concern flashed across his face as he studied the blade but it quickly vanished. After thoroughly inspecting the proffered evidence he looked up and looked at the ex-samurai's partner.

"Who is she?" he asked Gin.

"I am Tsukuyo, the leader of the Hyakka from Yoshiwara. The place where three women were murdered with daggers just like the one in your hand," the blond ninja firmly told him.

"Who cares if some prostitute dies," he sniffed dismissively.

Before Tsukuyo could react to the pompous man's comments Gin had his hand already on her arm to stay off any possible attacks. Her arm felt hard as her muscles flexed with a need to attack that man. Her normally cool face was hot with outrage and anger. It wasn't that Gin thought that she was out of line, he also wanted to teach him some manners himself, but right now there was a more pressing issue at hand, and it looked like they would need his cooperation.

"Before you go on saying something else that may be offensive I should warn you that Tsukuyo here is known as the Death God Courtesan for good reason," Gin gravely warned him.

Saotome held Tsukuyo's gaze for a moment. "I apologize for my rudeness," he said in a neutral tone with the slightest nod of the head. "I will let Ryuu know you are here after his guests leave. Whether he sees you or not will be up to him. If you would follow me."

He turned around and, without looking to see if they did indeed follow him, he set out back through the double door he came through. This led to a richly carpeted hallway with a set of stairs with a glossy, stained Oak handrail that curved up to the second floor on the left hand side. Saotome continued up the stairs and took a right at the hallway they led to and through a large solid door. As they traveled through the house it became apparent how much wealth Ryuu Kazume had acquired over the last few years.

"Uh, so what happened to your sister," Gin asked their unwilling guide.

Saotome stopped, looked back at Gin and then continued onward before answering him. "You really didn't keep in touch at all. Did you even know that Koizumi-chan died from the wounds she received that night?" His voice sounded terse as he spoke.

"Yeah I heard about her from Sakamoto," he replied. "But all he said about you four was that you were all doing as well as could be expected."

"I am the vice president of Kayu Inc, the trading company Ryuu started, and I am his right hand man. My sister, Kyoko, married Ryuu. They fell in love not long after Sakamoto-san left. They were arranged to get married before that attack anyway, but Kyoko was against it at the time. But after the attack left her face disfigured she became depressed and Ryuu picked her up out of her depression and they fell in love." His facial features softened as he spoke about his sister. "Ryuu offered Rin a job as well but Rin took the death of Riri really hard. They had been good friends. So he moved away and apprenticed himself as a metal smith. He is very good. Ryuu commissions work from him whenever he gets the chance."

As soon as Saotome finished bringing Gin up to date they reached the door to a waiting room. Saotome opened the door and let them in. The room was well furnished. There was another huge TV hanging on the wall and a couple of cushioned chairs on the opposite wall that appeared as if you would lose yourself in them when you sat down. There was an unlit fire place set in between the chairs with a couple of logs ready to heat the room if needed.

"Feel free to have a smoke. There are cigars on the table over there. I will let Ryuu know you are here. Please wait here until I send for you." And with that Saotome closed the door behind him leaving Gin and Tsukuyo alone in a room far too comfortable for comfort.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

As the door closed Gin started to look around the room. He noticed a large grandfather clock, next to the TV, that told him that it was a little past six. It seemed that he had missed the drama he had been watching. The rerun of the drama would be shown tomorrow so he would have to make sure that he wouldn't miss it. It had just ended at a cliffhanger, too, where Yukina had just confessed to Kira and Tamaki had just learned that he wasn't the father of Hime's baby.

After sitting down in one of the chairs, he picked up the remote and turned on the TV. He flipped the channel over to the Food Channel. Normally, right after he finished watching that drama, the Food Channel had a show airing called Confections that was about baking sweets. He had even tried making a few of the recipes, but he had been very happy with the results. Today the chef was making strawberry shortcake. Gin had never tried one before because parfaits always seemed like the better choice. However, after seeing the strawberries mixed with sugar and turned into a wonderful syrupy concoction he knew he had to make this sometime soon.

Tsukuyo had taken out her kiseru and filled it with some of the loose tobacco, which was next to the cigars on the desk. She stood between the two chairs and slowly exhaled the smoke from the periodic puffs she took. Never one to watch TV, she found it more amusing to observe how much Gin was into this cooking show. She patiently studied this man, who was known and feared as the Shiroyasha, stare intently and even mumble to his self along with the show as if to commit to memory the recipe he was being showed. She thought he looked so cute that she actually had to fight back a giggle at Gin's expense.

After the show had ended, Tsukuyo finally spoke up. "You are going to make a good wife someday." To cover her grin she took another long drag from her kiseru.

Gin turned his head towards her and looked at her for a moment with his dead fish eyes before responding blandly. "And you will make your wife cry herself to sleep at night because your job will always come first."

"Well someone needs to support our family," she argued back, her voice gaining a slight edge to it.

Gin got up out of the chair and placed his hands on his hips. "It's one thing to work hard to support the two of us but it wasn't long ago that you came back in time for dinner every night and now I hardly even see you on the weekends!"

"I've told you that there's a big project due and my boss is relying on me." She took another puff trying to regain her composure.

Getting more irritated he started to raise his voice. "I know what's going on here. I put on a little bit of weight and now you found yourself someone younger and prettier than me haven't you, you bastard!"

"Don't be stupid," she replied as calmly as she could muster.

They stared at each other intently, neither one budging an inch. The smoke from Tsukuyo's pipe swirled up towards the ceiling, continuing to fill the room with the smell of tobacco. In the background the TV had already started the next show. The program seemed to be about heart healthy foods. The woman was talking about substitutes for salt in a low sodium diet. The grandfather clock's rhythmic ticking could be heard over the show as the large pendulum swung back and forth.

"So now I'm stupid, huh?" Gin said quietly. "So why don't you explain it so someone as stupid as me could understand. Why do you need to make so much more money now?"

"Because I found out that you're pregnant!" She loudly exasperated.

Right before Tsukuyo had finishing her last sentence the door to the room flew open and in walked Takaki Saotome. Gin turned around to face the man as he entered the room. A look of shock registered on Saotome's face. His mouth started to move but no words were coming out. His eyes, wide from surprise, looked at Gin and then at Tsukuyo and then back at Gin again. The man was utterly speechless. Gin's brow furled in confusion at the man's reaction.

Cautiously Gin said, "Ah, Saotome, good. You've returned. I was starting to get tired of waiting."

"I…I…I had no idea, Gin. I had always th…th…thought that you were a man," the man stuttered.

"Huh?" Gin said with a bewildered look.

"Uh, nothing, I'm sorry." Saotome took a moment to recover from his shock before continuing. "I have a message from Ryu."

At that time Gin noticed that behind Saotome were two large men dressed in black suits. Even though they were inside they both sported the same pair of sunglasses. One of the men had an ugly scar running down his chin, his face showing a wicked grin. The other's face was set in stone and seemed almost as hard. At each of their hips were a holstered hand gun and combat knife and even though they wore the same uniform as Hasegawa, it was obvious that these two men were much more dangerous. In Gin's estimation these two men were part of Kazuma's personal private guard.

Gin gave his most sarcastic smile he could manage and said, "Did you want to introduce to me your boyfriends? To a single guy like myself I can only see this as bragging."

"Gintoki, I didn't know you swung that way," Tsukuyo gasped with a look of feigned surprise.

Gin turned to Tsukuyo "Oi, watch it," he told her in a hard voice. "I like girls, ok? I like nice, soft girls who smell nice and are cute." Gin turned back to Saotome and said, "Not that I think less of you, Saotome. Love is love."

The young twin continued as though Gin hadn't said anything; abate a vein on his forehead that pulsed angrily. He pulled the murder weapon from his belt and said, "Ryu says that this isn't his dagger and that he doesn't have time to talk to you about it, so I am to send you on your way."

"And you got these two to keep us company all the way back to my scooter?" Gin mocked. "I am sorry to say though that I must decline your gracious offer."

Tucking the dagger back in his belt he told them, "Now I don't want to hurt girls if I don't have to, especially a pregnant girl, but I will do my job to protect Ryu and my sister. So I am kindly asking you to leave quietly." He placed his hand on the hilt of his katana.

Gin let out a sigh. "If it were me I would just leave, but you have to convince my employer."

Tsukuyo walked up next to Gin and said, "Gintoki, you take care of that man in front of you and I will take out the two goons." A smile crossed her face. "Let's make a bet that whoever wins first buys the other dinner. How's that sound?"

Saotome gave no further warning as he started to draw his katana from its sheath. However, Tsukuyo, had been waiting for that tell tale moment, the unperceivable shift of his muscles that told her that he was about to take action; before he was able to clear his katana from its sheath she was already upon him. Flying toward him faster than seemed possible she led with her right foot and kicked his sword hand clear of the hilt, forcing the katana back into its sheath.

She landed low to the ground just past him and, with a smooth motion, threw two kunai that were already in hand at the two men just past the door. Having responded to their bosses' movements to draw his sword, the pair of bodyguards had already drawn their guns, but before they could so much as to fire once Tsukuyo's thrown kunai hit each of the guns and knocked them out of the guards' hands. Continuing forward, she kicked at the head of the man with a scar on his chin, however he blocked her kick with his left forearm. Trying to knock her to the ground, he pushed on her leg, lifting her off her feet. She arched her back, performed a handstand back flip, and, on her way back up, flipped a kunai that sunk into the man's right shoulder. She now stood in the hallway beyond the door situated between the two body guards.

Just after the kunoichi had passed Saotome, Gin was already upon him with his Lake Toya labeled boken swung hard, backhanded, at the man's head. Saotome nimbly ducked Gin's attack. Having reaffixed his hand back on the hilt of his katana, he started to draw it once again, this time looking to slice his opponent in one motion. Gin reached with his left hand and grabbed at the hilt of Saotome's katana. Spinning with the motion of the sword's trajectory, he threw it free of Saotome's hand and clear across the room, embedding it into the wall. Gin then planted a straight kick right in the man's gut, which knocked him hard into the wall behind him.

Tsukuyo, sensing the stony faced man behind her, dove to her right up against the wall of the hallway and narrowly dodged the heavy combat knife that sought to rip a hole in her kidney. The scar faced man had already wrenched the kunai out of his shoulder and tossed it aside with a grunt. Because of the limited movement of his right arm, the man drew his knife with his left hand with a reverse grip and, with a quick flip, held the blade upright. The two men, working in perfect unison, advanced towards Tsukuyo, and sought to corner her.

A couple more kunai appeared in her hands and, not waiting for her opponents to come to her, she rushed the stony faced man. The man flashed his blade towards her with a speed that belied his size. She nimbly dodged each thrust and slashed at him, her kunai leaving angry looking cuts on his arm. Hoping to catch her off guard the man leveled a kick at her, but she sunk her kunai deep into his leg and landed a kick of her own right in his groin. She spun a roundhouse kick, connecting the heel of her boot to the man's temple, and he crumpled to the floor with his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Surprised at not feeling the presence of the scar faced man, Tsukuyo turned to find him and Gin standing in the hallway with his finger up his nose. The scare faced man had a huge bump on his head and was lying unconscious on the floor. Withdrawing his finger from his nose and casually flicking, away what was left on his finger, he gave her a smug grin. With dinner on the line Gin hadn't held back at all and they both knew who had won the bet.

"Let's go find Ryu Kazuma and then I will treat you to the dinner I owe you," she said with a resigned sigh.

"Hold on a second," he said as he returned to the room.

Saotome was sitting on the floor trying to catch his breath. His hands clutched at his stomach where he had been kicked. Gin approached to him and bent down to take the dagger from the man's belt. He tried to talk but could only cough and glare at the man who had so easily beat him. Now they just had to find Kazuma.

Gin and Tsukuyo started down the wide hallway. This was a big house that seemed almost a maze to those unfamiliar with it. They hoped to find someone to show them to where Kazuma was, whether by force or by choice. They turned the corner and found a maid cowering behind a lamp desk. Her eyes were wide with terror having witnessed the intense battle.

With a reassuring, smile Gin walked up to her and asked, "Uh, excuse me. Could you tell me where I could find Kazuma-san?"

With an involetary jerk she shrank back. "I…I…I'm sorry sir, but Kazuma-sama has just left for a business trip," she stuttered.

They quickly returned the way they had come. Back through the halls and down the curved stairs that led to the main front door. Gin rushed over to the large double door and yanked it open. Driving towards the gate was a Rolls-Royce. Through the window of the car Gin could see a man, not much younger than him, looking back at him. Gin had met that man before though, the last time he had seen him, Ryu Kazuma had still been a boy. Now he was a man. His face was blank as their eyes met and stayed that way until the coach turned and headed through the gate. Behind him Gin could hear Tsukuyo cursing loudly and he felt the same way. So much for getting this wrapped up in a single day.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Warm sunlight filtered into Gin's bedroom, splashing across his face and stirring him from his sleep. The muted sounds from the street permeated through the thin walls. As he awoke, there were two things that he noticed. First was the splitting headache he had from all the drinking from the previous night. He was still a bit foggy about the events, but he did remember that it had been one crazy night. The second was the soft, warm body that had her arms wrapped around him.

With a quick look under the blanket he found Tsukuyo sleeping soundly in his futon, her head resting on his arm. Gin could feel her warm breath gently tickle his face. Though disheveled, they both still wore the same clothes they were wearing the day before. To Gin's relief it appeared that nothing happened, but he was still worried for his future health when she did wake up.

Gently Gin tried to dislodge himself from the still sleeping kunoichi. He took the arm she had wrapped around him and slowly started to move it. He almost shit himself when he felt her starting to stir. She brought her arm to her chest and started to nuzzle her face toward Gin's chest, while murmuring in her sleep. He lay there, motionless, willing her to stay asleep and the only thought coming to mind was how good she smelled. Just as Gin was about to continue to execute his escape plan, the door to his room burst open with a thunderous thud.

"Gin-chan," she shouted. "I'm home!"

Bolting through the door was a young, translucent skinned girl. Her vermilion hair was parted and tied up into two Chinese styled buns on the sides of her head. They were each held in place with a black bun cover ornament that had yellow piping. She wore a red cheongsam that was also fringed with yellow piping. It looked like Kagura had arrived home from her sleepover at Princess Soyo's. Gin was too busy wondering why she was home so early in the morning to notice the girl on his arm starting to stir.

"Shh, Kagura, keep it down," he quietly implored the young girl in vain as Tsukuyo's eyes shot open and she sat up, her hair matted like a birds nest.

Noticing Tsukuyo sitting next to Gin in his futon Kagura started to snicker. "Checheche, Gin-chan and Tsuki got it on last night, aru."

For a moment no one said anything and just looked at each other. The noises from the bustling street that streamed in through the thin walls were all that could be heard. Kagura just stood in the doorway with a massive grin on her face. Gin sat motionless, like a deer caught in the headlights, and was struck dumb. Tsukuyo, still a bit groggy, looked around in confusion. Slowly her eyes widened as she realized where she was and whom she was sharing a futon. Her face flushed with embarrassment.

She looked down to notice that, while she still wore her kimono, it had fallen so that her shoulders were bare. Tsukuyo's face turned an even deeper shade of red. She quickly grabbed her kimono and pulled it up over her exposed, unblemished shoulders and held it closed as if willing that no one had seen them. Then, unable to bear the embarrassment any longer, she dashed from the room and headed into the bathroom.

Gin gave a sign of relief. He was half expecting her to end his life for a minute there. Feeling the tension leaving his body he collapsed back down onto his futon. He closed his eyes and covered his face with his hands. He could feel his blood pulse violently through the vessels in his temples. Kagura's continued snickering caused him to wonder why she was home so early in the morning. She was most definitely not helping in this situation.

"Why are you home?" Gin asked Kagura bluntly without looking up as he started to rub his head in an effort to relieve the pressure from his hangover. "You usually don't even get up until almost noon if you don't have to."

"Checheche," she snickered. "Gin-chan, it's already past noon, aru. You guys musta stayed up all night." Her voice oozed with hidden meaning.

Gin sat up and with a loud grunt grabbed at his side in pain. He lifted his shirt to see a bruise on his middle abdomen that was the size of a softball. He tenderly examined the bruise with his fingers and was relieved to find that none of his ribs were broken at least. His left shoulder also twinged whenever he moved it. He didn't think he got hurt in the fight with Saotome and his two lackeys the day before. _What the hell happened last night? _He thought.

"Shut up, dumbass," He admonished the pale Yato girl. "Damn I feel like I was hit by a truck."

"Your face looks funnier than normal too, aru. From the smell of it you musta gone drinkin' last night with Tsuki an' you know how she gets when she's drunk. If you go out drinkin' with her anymore you might need plaster surgery, aru," she asserted.

"It's called plastic surgery, dumbass," he corrected her.

"Whatever it's made of, I don't care." Kagura stubbornly stuck a finger up her nose.

"Kagura, do me a favor and go check on Tsukuyo and get out of my hair," he requested.

Kagura pulled down her eyelid with her finger and stuck out her tongue at him. She whirled around and rushed over to the bathroom door. Gin could hear her knock on the door and call out to Tsukuyo, "Tsuki! Are you ok? Are you takin' a dump?"

Blotting his boarder from his mind, Gin tried to piece the previous night together. He remembered going out to eat with Tsukuyo; she had, after all, promised to treat him after losing that bet. Gin brought her to one of his favorite spots, and seeing as Tsukuyo was paying, he remembered that he had ordered a bottle of sake. Tsukuyo graciously offered to pour it for him. It wasn't long before his impromptu host had mistakenly drunk some of the liquor herself. The rest of the night was a wild party where only disjointed bits and pieces would flash in his memory, most of which were her random acts of violence.

Gin did remember that it was closing time when they had left the bar. They both stumbled and swayed as they walked, though Tsukuyo more so. Being a true gentleman, he tried to give her some support by wrapping her arms around him. It was then that she had punched him in his lower rib cage, causing him to double over in pain. Without his support, Tsukuyo fell to the unpaved street, bringing him with her, and she giggled at their folly.

When they had finally made it back to Yorozuya Gin he was already exhausted and Tsukuyo was unconscious. He remembered being surprised at how light she felt in his arms as he carried her to his room. After he laid her down in his futon, which had been left out from the night before, he tried to stand up but found that her arms were still wrapped around him. Not really thinking properly with his head still foggy the evening's festivities, he decided that it would be too much trouble to separate himself from her and would just sleep there.

"Gin-chan, I'm goin' out, aru. Tsuki said she wishes for your death so don't die till I get back tonight. Okay?" Kagura called out from down the hall on her way out.

Gin stood up and started his normal morning routine. This day was not shaping up to be a good one and he just wanted to get it over with. After he properly dressed himself, he folded his futon away. Next to where his futon was, were his boken, the silver dagger, and his boots, all of which he must have simply thrown there before falling asleep. He put on his boots, picked up the boken, and slid it into his belt. As he bent over to pick up the dagger, seeing it reminded him of something.

Tucking the dagger in his belt, he hastily went down the hall to find the bathroom door already open and the room empty. Feeling anxious that Tsukuyo may have already left he checked the kitchen, to find her sitting at the table. With her kimono securely straightened out and had her hair back up in its usual style, she looked dejectedly at the far wall smoking her kiseru. Gin let out a sigh of relief.

Gin went over to the stove and put the kettle on. While waiting for the water to boil he got out some oats and poured them into two bowls from the cabinet. Before long the kettle started to whistle. He turned off the stove and added the hot water to the oats. Taking a couple of spoons from the drawer he stirred up the oats until they thickened. He brought the bowls to the table, setting one in front of Tsukuyo and the other at the empty spot next to her. Before sitting down he grabbed the carton of strawberry milk from the refrigerator.

Tsukuyo had been watching him from the corner of her eye. After getting over the initial shock of waking up in that man's arms, she was able to calm down and she certainly didn't want what happened to interfere with her current assignment. When he returned to the table with the strawberry milk, she wondered for a moment why he didn't have a glass or if he was going to drink it right from the carton. To her surprise, she watched as he poured the pink liquid onto his porridge and added what looked to be ten spoonfuls of sugar from the sugar bowl on the table. She forwent adding the strawberry milk to her porridge but did add a couple of spoonfuls of sugar before she started to eat.

"I should thank you for your help," she said quietly. She hoped that if she didn't bring up the previous night that somehow it wouldn't have happened. "I understand if you are busy today. The lead you gave concerning Ryuu Kazuma will be most helpful. He won't be able to hide for long."

Gin tipped his bowl up to his mouth to finish off the last of the strawberry milk and set it back down on the table. "Eh? What you're saying doesn't make sense. You hired me to find the murderer. I'm not about to let you take back your payment," he replied, his voice dripping with contention.

"I told you that you could keep that dagger. We have two more identical ones." Against her will, her voice gained an edge.

"You think that I haven't heard that tired story before, dumbass." Gin's voice rose more than a few more decibels as he continued. "Next thing you know, a week from now and you be pounding on my door demanding your payment back."

"Like I would willingly come to your door," Tsukuyo's voice matched Gin's in temper.

Gin put on the most cantankerous smile he could muster. "Why not? You willingly came to my bed last night."

"I did not!" she yelled indignantly.

"Oh? You're the one that clung onto me and wouldn't let go," he said. Tsukuyo's face turned bright red as she struggled to find a proper retort. "Fine, fine. Calm down, would you? Nothing happened last night. Not even a good night kiss," he continued, trying to placate her.

"Maybe it would be better if I just left." She stood up and turned to leave.

"Oi, Tsukuyo, sit down. I'm not going to let you make me do all the work alone," he admonished.

She looked back at the silver haired man who currently, once again, had his finger up his nose. "What work? I just have to track down Kazuma. I don't need you for that."

"And what if he isn't the killer? I promised Zura that I wouldn't jump to conclusions about him. Besides I thought up a new lead while I was getting dressed."

"What new lead?" Having caught her attention she sat back down.

"Well, I figure you can't just go to the store to buy one of these daggers." Gin pulled the silver dagger from his belt. "When Saotome was escorting us to that room he said that Ryuu would only use Rin Sanada for any smithing work."

Getting excited, Tsukuyo finished Gin's thought for him. "So if those really were Kazuma's daggers, then he would have had Sanada craft them!"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Gin and Tsukuyo were grinning at each when they heard the front door slide open. "Gin-san!" a young voice called out from the hallway.

A teenage boy peeked into the kitchen. A friendly smile displayed across his face as he entered the room to join them. He wore a white Kimono trimmed in blue and his hakama was a matching blue. There was actually very little that stood out about him. One could say that the only distinctive quality about this boy was the pair of glasses that sat on his face.

"Ah! Gin-san, Tsukuyo-san, how are you doing today?" the young man greeted them.

"Oi, Shinpatchi, I thought I would be free of you until the end of the week. Did you get sick of your sister's cooking, or maybe sick from?" Gin asked his employee.

"I've been doing the cooking," The glasses man said in a flat tone. "I passed Kagura-chan in the street and she told me that you and Tsukuyo-san spent the night together," he continued in a teasing manner.

Gin picked up his bowl and drank the last bit of strawberry milk that was left over from his porridge. He saw that Tsukuyo had almost finished her breakfast as well. He picked up the carton of milk that was on the table and took a big swig to finish it off. He turned in his chair, raised the carton above his head like it was a basketball and, with careful aim, he tossed the empty container into the trash can.

"Eh, Shinpatchi, do you believe everything you see on TV?" The silver haired man asked.

"Uh, Gin-san, I didn't see it on TV. I heard it from Kagura, and Tsukuyo-san is sitting right there." Shinpatchi said reasonably.

"Are you blind?" Gin scoffed. "I would think it were obvious that this here is Tsukuyo's twin sister, Usotsukiyo."

Shinpatchi looked at the blond woman sitting at the table and then back at Gin. "What the hell are you talking about? This is obviously Tsukuyo-san."

"Gintoki, there is no reason to lie to him," Tsukuyo told him.

"Yes, thank you Tsukuyo-san. I don't know why Gin tells these tall tales," the samurai-in-training said with relief.

"It's fine Gintoki. I don't need you to protect me. He can know that I am actually this Tsukuyo person's doppelganger," the kunoichi said seriously.

"Um, you guys…"

"Shinpachi, I am sorry. I didn't want to lie to you but I figured the fewer people that knew the better," Gin told him. "The real truth is that this isn't Tsukuyo's doppelganger but the doppelganger of Tsukuyo's twin sister, Usotsukiyo's. She came here with job for me. She is lost and wanted my help to get her back home to Doppelgangerica."

"If you didn't want to lie then why are you lying now?" Shinpatchi asked in vein.

"Thank you so much, Gintoki….san." She added the belated honorific as an afterthought. That and her monotone speech made it clear that she was a terrible actress.

"Now you both are just going to ignore me."

"Tsuku…I mean Doppelganger-san, I could never turn down a damsel in distress," Gin told her extravagantly.

"You were just about to call her Tsukuyo. Weren't you?"

Gin moved his hand up to his mouth and gasped. "I am sorry Doppelganger-san, I almost gave away your true name," he said insincerely.

"It's ok Gintoki-san. You can tell him. He seems like a good person," she said with a badly acted sigh.

The room went silent. Shinpatchi looked between Gin and this apparent doppelganger who Shinpatchi obviously believed to be Tsukuyo. Gin was staring at Shinpatchi as if he were judging whether the teen could be trusted with such vital information. The flat look Shinpatchi gave the two adults, for lack of a better term, belied his belief that Gin was just trying to buy time to come up with a new cover story. If it wasn't for this belief then he might have felt some sense of tension in the room.

"Very well," Gin started. "Her true name is Tsukibot2000. Everybody from Doppelgangerica are synthetically made life forms that the Government made to take the place of those who they needed to be quietly taken care of. Obviously this was a failed project so now they just try to live their lives like normal people. But if the general populous found out about them there would be an uproar so we need you to be discrete. Tsukibot2000's life may depend on it."

"Gin-san, you expect me to believe this? Why don't you just tell the truth?"

"Eh? You don't believe me? If she were really Tsukuyo then do you think I would do this?" Gin got up out of his chair and walked over to where Tsukuyo was sitting. She looked up at him with a questioning look. Gin reached out with both of his hands and placed them on her chest, each hand cupping a mound.

"Gin-san, what the hell are you doing!" Shinpatchi exclaimed.

"See? She isn't Tsukuyo. She is a robot," Gin explained without removing his hands. "Robots don't care if you touch them."

Tsukuyo sat there in shock. Her face steadily got more and more red, as the second ticked on by and Gin didn't remove his hands from her. Then she felt his fingers squeeze slightly.

"Get your hands off me your pervert," Tsukuyo yelled. She stood up and reached out with her left hand and grabbed a hold of Gin's kimono. She made a fist with her right and, pulling him towards her, she connected it with his chin with an upper cut. He fell backward. His hands flailed out to grab onto something but only succeeded knocking over a chair on top of him as he fell to the floor.

"Gin-san," Shinpatchi exclaimed. "You knew Tsukuyo-san was going to hit you! Why did you do that?"

"Shinpatchi-san is it?" she asked him.

"You're still going to going along with it?" he asked disappointedly.

Tsukuyo continued as if she had not been interrupted. "Gintoki just was under the misconception that a doppelganger series robot wouldn't punch someone how violated them. We are, after all, supposed to seamlessly take the place of a human."

"I give up," Shinpatchi shook his head in defeat. "Aneue is waiting for me to return with some ice cream so I am going to continue with my errands and leave you two to whatever it is you are doing." The bespectacled teen left Yorozuya Gin-chan. The sound of the front door closing put an exclamation point on the frustrating time he had trying to talk to them.

Gin still lay on the floor after having received the blow from Tsukuyo. "Get up Gintoki. We still have some work to do," she told him.

Gin opened his eyes and pushed the chair off him as he sat up. He gingerly stood up and ruefully rubbed his chin. "Oi, why'd you hit me so hard?"

"I should have hit you harder, you ass," she told him flatly. "If you do something like that again I will castrate you."

"Hey, dumbass, you didn't think that I actually wanted to touch your oversized tits? Eh? Did you?" Gin said scornfully. "It isn't like you have Ketsuno Ana's beautiful, perfect tits."

"You are the type who lusts after some woman you could never have. You are pathetic."

Gin smirked at the blond woman. "So what you're saying is that if I wanted, I could have you. Aren't you being forward today?"

Tsukuyo took a step back from him. Her face flushed with embarrassment. "I…I said nothing of the sort," she stammered. "Like I would like such a perverted minded, waste of a human, such as you"

"Oi, without perverts the world economy would fail. Don't put down perverts," he told her.

"Enough of this," she signed. "Let's get going before I decide to put a kunai between your eyes.

.X.

When Gin opened the front door to Yorozuya Gin-chan, he had pause for a moment to shield his eyes from the bright, noon day sun with his hand. Tsukuyo pushed her way impatiently past him onto the steps overlooking the street. It wasn't a hot day but the direct light from the sun felt warm on their skin. The light breeze carried the scent of the many flowers being sold by the local florist.

It wasn't until after they had descended the steps that Gin remembered that he still owed rent for the month. He usually stepped as quietly as possible when he owed Otose, the old woman he rented the space for Yorozura Gin-can from, but, in their haste, he was sure that the old bat would hear their footsteps. Gin tossed Tsukuyo a helmet and quickly strapped on his own. They got on his scooter and, while he was turning the key in the ignition, Otose's front door opened.

The woman who came out was not Otose, but one of her employees, Catherine. She was a woman in her thirties with short black hair. She wore a plain, green kimono with a blue obi, but her most distinctive feature was her ears. A pair of cat ears sat atop her head.

"Hey," she yelled after the pair. "Get back here!" The cat girl Amanto took off her left sandal and threw it after them as they sped off.

"What did she want?" Tsukuyo asked Gin after they had turned down another street, well away from the crazy cat lady and her dangerous sandals.

"Eh? She probably just wanted my phone number or something like that," he answered with an indifferent shrug.

"Do you know where the blacksmith, Sanada is anyway?" Tsukuyo's new query indicated that she had finished with the previous line of questioning.

"No, but I plan on asking an associate of mine," he answered her.

The streets of the Kabuki District were busy so they were unable travel as fast as Tsukuyo wished they could. She was starting to get impatient. She worried about whether more girls would become victim to the Yoshiwara serial killer and she felt like she was no closer to finding the murderer. Ryuu Kazuma had been their best chance to gather some information on the dagger they had found but he had refused to talk with them. Now if only they could find this Ren Sanada and that he had something that could help them.

Tsukuyo was so lost in her thoughts that she was a bit surprised when Gin started to pull over the scooter. They had arrived at a restaurant called Hokuto Shiken. After they entered the smell gave away that is was a raman shop. Behind the counter a woman with long blond hair worked. Still Tsukuyo wondered why he had stopped here, but kept it to herself. Maybe his acquaintance was this woman here. For some reason that thought angered her.

Gin sat down at the counter and motioned for Tsukuyo to do the same. "Hi, Gin-san, who is this you bring with you today?" the proprietress asked him cheerfully when he sat down.

"This is my friend, Tsukuyo," he answered her. "I was hoping that you have seen Katsura recently."

"Ah, that guy," she smiled ruefully. "Yeah, he is actually in the restroom right now. He came in this morning looking for work. I hope that you've come to take him away."

"I am afraid not. I just need to ask him a question," he told the blond chef.

"Ikumatsu-dono, have you given any thought in to letting me work here today?" Katsura asked as he exited the restroom. He wore purple suit more suited for a high class restaurant than for a small raman shop like this one. "Hello, Gintoki, fancy meeting you here."

"You know I don't like letting you work here," she told the overdressed man waving her ladle at him. "I am tired of having my shop blown up by the Shinsengumi."

"Oi, Zura, stop trying to get laid and get over here. I have to talk to you." Gin told him.

"It is not Zura, It is Katsura."

"This might go better if I talk to Zura alone. Why not have a bowl of raman while you wait?" Gin said to Tsukuyo quietly.

Gin moved to the far end of the counter where he was joined by the would be waiter. Feeling a bit miffed at being excluded, Tsukuyo crossed her arms over her chest. She hoped that this wasn't a waste of time.

"Why not take that helmet off and have a cup of tea while they talk?" Ikumatsu's friendly voice interupted her silent brooding.

"Ah, sure," she answered with a forced smile as she took off the helmet and combed her fingers through her hair. "Do you own this place?"

"That I do. Would you like any sugar in your tea?"

"No thanks." She took the offered cup from her.

"I haven't seen you around here before. Are you new to the Kabuki District or maybe you just don't like raman?" Ikumatsu asked her with a jovial grin.

Tsukuyo took a sip from the cup and set it back down. "I am from Yoshiwara. I lead the Hyakka. I have him helping me track down a murderer." She looked at Gin.

"Well, truth be told, I doubt there is anyone more capible than him or the man sitting with him. Even if the pair of them are somewhat defective. Well if you will excuse me I need to get back to work. The stock won't cook itself."

By the time Tsukuyo had finished the tea Gin was returning from his conversation. "Zura didn't know exactly where but I now have a general idea where Sanada is," he told her.

"Good, let's go find him. I would like to finaly get some answers."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Surprisingly, it didn't take long for Gin and Tsukuyo to find the smithy where Ren Sanada worked. Once they had followed the directions that Katsura had given them to get them to the right district, Gin politely asked the first person he saw where it was located. That is if sticking a finger up your nose and talking in an imperious and demanding tone could be considered polite.

The wooden sign on the smithy read Riri Ironworks. Next to the modestly sized building was a forge and anvil. A man was currently hammering on a piece of metal. Each precise strike rang through the street. The man was covered in soot and sweat from the forge. He was of moderate height and he kept his dark hair cut short. Though he was young, the strength and skill that he worked the metal with was that of a professional.

The man looked up at his visitors. He took the metal he was working on and squelched it in a nearby bucket of water. He put his tools down and turned to face his visitors; wiping his hands on the burn spotted apron he wore.

"Gintoki," the man simply acknowledged his visitor.

"Oi, are you Sanada?" Gin asked the smith.

The man chuckled. "Yeah I am," he told him. "Ryu said that you might stop by. You just missed him."

"He stopped by?" The silver haired man asked.

"Yep, he came to check on how much longer it would take before I finished making another dagger for him."

Tsukuyo drew forward. "Wait, you've been making daggers for him?" she asked him. "Do they look like this one? Come on Gintoki, show him," she impatiently told her partner.

Gin pulled the dagger from his belt; giving Tsukuyo an annoyed look, and held it out for the blacksmith to see.

"Ah yeah, that is one of mine," he answered jovially "Ryu stopped by about a month ago to commission eight of these daggers. He wanted each one as I completed them. I was about to finish the fifth one today. He asked that I deliver it to him tonight."

"Do you know where we can find him? We wanted to ask him a few questions," Gin said as he tucked the silver inlayed blade back into his belt.

"Oh sure I know where he is. I will take you right to him," he happily answered. "Wait right here while I get ready to take you there.

The young man took off the burn spotted apron he was wearing, hung it up on a hook and went inside the smithy through the side door. Gin looked over in Tsukuyo's direction and noted the suspicious look she had. It also seemed to him that Ryu was being more helpful than either of them thought he would be.

"How much do you trust this guy, Gintoki?" The kunoichi asked him.

"Why? Do you want to ask him out on a date?" he asked her sarcastically.

Tsukuyo decided to let that one pass. She sighed with resignation. To expect him to take this seriously would be futile. A feint smile played on her lips. _Well that was part of his charm as well_, she thought.

It wasn't long before Ren returned from inside the smithy. He had changed out of his work clothes and had put on a plain brown kimono. He had also washed the ash and sweat off of his face and arms. Up close, Tsukuyo could see that his arms looked like those of the blacksmith that he was, like they have been pounding steel for years. At his hip he wore the good sized hammer.

"Ready?" Ren asked. Gin nodded in response.

Ren opened the small shed on the side of his place and wheeled out a scooter. He lifted his leg up over the seat and sat down. Gin noted that the smith's scooter started much more cleanly than his old beat up model. It seemed to him that being a blacksmith paid a lot better than he what he made, but the thought of actually having to do real work made his stomach queasy.

Before long Gin, with Tsukuyo sitting behind him, were riding down the busy highway, closely following Ren. The smith moved deftly through traffic never bothering to look back to make sure that they were keeping up. By Gin's estimation they were heading towards the warehouses down by the docks. His suspicions were confirmed when Ren took that exit.

The sun was over head when they arrived at their destination of two rows of huge warehouses. The warehouse that they stopped at, in the second row, had a large number 10 painted in white on the large bay door. The grey building was big enough to house several of the forty foot industrial shipping containers and, other than the different number painted on its side, it looked like every other building in the row.

When Gin dismounted off of his scooter he noted that the area was deserted. Ren was already waiting for them at the side door. Gin knew something didn't feel right about all of this. Looking over at Tsukuyo he noticed her frowning doubtfully too. Since meeting Ren again this wasn't the first time that he thought that he was being led into a trap, but Gin figured that springing a trap would be the best way of getting to the truth.

"Here we are," Ren happily announced.

"Oi, I wish you would stop it with that fake smile and overly happy routine," Gin told him with a finger up his nose. "You're not really a good actor. I could feel your hatred towards me even at your forge."

Ren's smile slowly faded from his face. "If you knew that then why did you follow me here?"

"Eh? I figured this was easier than questioning you."

A smirk flashed on the smiths face. He reared back and kicked at the door. The door flew open and banged against the inside wall with a thud. "Then come in and get me," he taunted them.

Gin and Tsukuyo stood there for a moment. "Well it looks like my job is done," Gin lazily told her. "I think I might pick up Jump on the way home."

Tsukuyo drew a pair of kunai, one in each hand. "You're just going to leave me here?" she asked him credulously with an arched eyebrow.

"Eh? You hired me to help you find the killer. I'm pretty sure he's in there." He pointed towards the warehouse.

"'Pretty sure' isn't what I hired you for."

"Oi, you know he's in there. Just go get him. It shouldn't be hard," he retorted.

"If it's so easy then why don't you see this through with me? If you're not going to finish your job then I want the dagger back." She held out her hand expectantly. "Come on. Hand it over."

"Fine, fine, I'll do your job for you."

Gin drew his boken and cautiously drew up to the kicked in door with Tsukuyo. Inside, the warehouse was pitched black. Gin groaned inwardly. This was obviously a trap and here they were going to willingly walk right into it. He figured that the worst case scenario they would have to fight Ren, Ryu, Takaki and maybe a couple of those SS guards. The two of them looked at each other and when Gin nodded they both jumped through the door.

Both Gin and Tsukuyo moved away from the entrance quickly to avoid being a visible target. The only light that could be seen from inside the building came from that door. Gin moved swiftly and silently, keeping his ears open for any sound that could give his enemies away. Just as his eyes started to adjust to the darkness the bright warehouse lights were turned on.

Momentarily, his eyes felt like tiny daggers were being plunged into them. Turning the lights on surprised him. The sudden bright light would be just as if not more painful to them seeing as they had been in the darkness even longer than he had. It seemed to him that these amateurs had just given up one of their biggest advantages. It was fine with him. He liked it when his enemies made mistakes. His eyes quickly readjusted and what he found was that this warehouse was void of anything that normally would be there. What he did find was that there were a lot of Amanto.

Gin could tell that these guys were not a part of the Harusame. They looked familiar to him, but he just couldn't put his finger on where he had seen Amanto that looked like these. They all looked like humanoid cats, cheetahs to be exact, with their tan fur covered with black spots. They all wore the same purple collared uniform. Each of them was armed with a Katana. Standing in the center of the room was Ren.

"Oi, Ren, I always thought of you as more of a dog person," the silver haired man told him.

"It seems that you underestimated the number of people in the world that you've pissed off, Gin Sakata," Ren snidely told him.

"I don't remember stepping on any tails."

"Make you jokes now but we will have the last laugh," he gestured to his conspirators. "It's your fault that Kiri is dead! Our village should never have been involved in that war! It's your fault and you will pay for it!" he shouted. His face had turned beet red with rage. He took a deep breath to help calm down before continuing. "My friends here have their own score to settle with you. It seems you killed one of their ambassadors a few years back. You may have thought you killed all the witnesses but one of his aids survived and it has taken all of this time to track you down. Imagine their surprise to find that the assassin they were looking for was the Shiroyasha."

"As for why I targeted those whores in Yoshiwara that is easily answered. You are the hero of Yoshiwara. You saved them all but you couldn't save Kiri or my family, and what did these whores do with their newly gained freedom? Nothing, they had the chance of a life time and they squandered it. They don't even deserve to live, not when an innocent like Kiri couldn't. I wanted you dead and the Chatorans wanted you dead so we came to this little arrangement. Now we just need to kill you and frame Ryuu for everything."

"Oi, I remember some guys like you. They were the guys the knocked over my parfait back when I first met Patchi-kun. Eh? You're still upset over that? What about the statute of limitations or some other legal nonsense?" Gin asked them.

"You really are getting on my nerves, you bastard," Ren yelled at him.

"Hey," Gin called over to Tsukuyo. "This guy just confessed to the crime. He's the killer so my job is done. You can handle the rest right?"

"You want to just leave me here to deal with a room full of armed men by myself?"

"Well you women are always going on and on about equality so I assume you don't need my help."

"Even an elephant would need some help with these numbers."

"These guys are pansies. I barely hit a few of them with my boken and they died."

"Enough," Ren yelled, interrupting their squabble. He hit the steel wall with his hammer as emphasis, the clang echoed through the warehouse. "It's time you both died!"

* * *

><p>Author Note<p>

I would like to apologize for taking so long to post this chapter. Thank you everyone for reading my fic. Please stay tuned for the final chapter.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

A Chatorans went to draw his sword, but, before it could clear its sheath, Gin was upon him. The feline's teeth went flying as the samurai's boken smashed him in the face, violently snapping his head around. Gin was already moving towards his next target before the anthropomorphic cat fell to the ground, limp. He swung his wooden sword in a long sweeping arc, hitting two others in that yielded similar results. The silver-haired man turned and, following up in the same motion, threw his weapon at a fourth Amanto. The boken spun, end over end, and hit him in the throat, causing him to fall to the ground choking.

Tsukuyo, one step behind Gin, threw one of her kunai while on a dead run, hitting a Chatoran in the chest. Before the man could fall to the ground, she charged forward and kicked him in the torso, retrieving her kunai at the same time. One of the faster Chatorans slashed at her with his katana. She arched backwards, watching the blade flash over her face. She dropped to the ground and kicked the man's feet out from under him. She rolled quickly to her feet, striking the throat of another man who came up behind her with a kunai. She jumped over the Chatoran she had knocked to the ground, who was just getting to his feet, and caught the left sleeve of her kimono around his neck. Another Chatoran charged Tsukuyo with his sword raised over his head, looking to slice her in two. She danced away from the attack, spinning the cat man she had caught in her sleeve into his comrade's blade.

Gin bent to pick up the Katana of the first Chatoran he took out. As he stood, he slashed up at the Amanto nearest to him, cutting him down. Another jumped at him from above. He deftly parried the man's attack and ran him through. He turned and cut down the Amanto closest to him and, as the man fell, he saw two more coming at Tsukuyo from behind. He was about to call out a warning when he saw her dance between them and, almost faster than the eye could follow, delivered three lethal strikes to each of them before throwing a kunai in Gin's direction. It whizzed past his ear, killing the man who was about to attack him from behind. They come together and turned back to back to face the onslaught of enemies looking to kill them.

After seeing their comrades quickly being taken out, still numbering more than Gin could count conveniently, the rest approached the duo more cautiously. One of the Amanto leaders made a few hand gestures and they fanned out. They carefully surrounded Gin and Tsukuyo and kept their distance from the pair.

"It looks like you owe me lunch after this, Gintoki," the blond kunoichi taunted him. "I just saved your miserable life."

"Just don't get yourself killed before then or I'll eat and drink both our share. I'm going to buy some good beef too and make a hot-pot. It would be pretty sad if you missed out just because you got yourself killed by one of these losers."

"Haha, you said it," she laughed. "I'm going to hold you to that promise."

"Enough!" the Amanto commander yelled pointing his katana at the pair. "Attack!"

The Amanto rushed at them from all sides. Gin charged into the fray, swinging his katana seemingly chaotically, but took several of them out before reaching the wall of the warehouse. He jumped and kicked himself off the wall, flipping over the attack from one of the Chatoran behind him. He grabbed the wrist of the man's sword arm and threw him to his right, into the man's comrades. A Chatoran attacked from the left side and Gin kicked his sword away and cut down yet another attacking alongside him.

Tsukuyo threw a kunai from each hand taking out a pair of Amanto that were charging her. With a flick of the wrist she drew a couple more kunai and rolled to her left, ducking under a katana. She lashed out, stabbing one man's inner thigh and ripped it viciously as she spun to her feet and kicked the man aside the head. To her left a man charged her. She dodged nimbly, but winced in pain as she felt the man's katana bite into her arm. She quickly rolled forward as another man attacked from behind her. As she came up she turned and threw her kunai, hitting the men the neck. She jumped backwards in a flip, wrapping her legs around the head of an Amanto's behind her, snapped his neck and flipped back on her feet, rearmed with a fresh pair of kunai.

A loud groan echoed through the warehouse as the bay door started to open. Gin and Tsukuyo were not the only ones caught by surprise. The Chatoran were also taken aback, frozen momentarily in shock, by this sudden interruption. Standing there were two men armed with katana and a woman with a scar down her face who was wielding a pair of wakizashi. Right away Gin recognized Ryuu and Saotome. He could only assume that the woman was Saotome's sister, Kyoko.

"It looks like you were right, dear," the woman told Ryuu sweetly. She pointed one of her wakizashi at Ren and smirked, "Ren-chan here was trying to frame you. I think I may have to give him a little make over by running this blade through his throat."

Saotome gave her a disgusted look. "I can't take you anywhere without you embarrassing me, Onee-san. Can't you learn to act more civilized?"

"Calm down, Takaki," Kazuma chuckled to his friend. "She isn't going to change and besides, I like her just the way she is and, this time, I happen to agree with her." The last part he said with an edge to his voice.

The three of them charged into the building to join the clash against the Amanto. Ryuu and Saotome cut their way through several of the cat men. Kyoko covered their backs as they pushed their way into the throng of enemies, deftly parrying each incoming attack and riposting in a whip like fashion with her off-hand wakizashi. The three of them worked together seamlessly to take down Chatoran after Chatoran.

Gin and Tsukuyo took advantage of the distraction that their new apparent allies had given them and quickly regrouped. A cursory survey told Gin that the Chatoran numbers were rapidly dwindling. This fight had not gone the way that the Chatoran had hoped with more than half of them dead and even more badly wounded.

"Oy, I'll help clean up here. You make sure that damn blacksmith doesn't run away," the silver-haired man told Tsukuyo.

The blond ninja nodded in agreement. She spied her target, Ren, on the far side of the warehouse. He had his hammer like mace in hand, but was looking upon the battle with trepidation. With most of the attention now on the three newcomers Tsukuyo was able to more easily move about the warehouse.

Ren noticed Tsukuyo just as she was upon him and was just able deflect the kunai she had thrown at him with his hammer. He felt a sharp pain in his leg as the second kunai she had thrown found its mark. The blacksmith's face flushed with rage and he screamed out in pain. He charged at her and swung his heavy weapon with the ease that most people would a sword.

Tsukuyo nimbly jumped out of range of the hammer. She reached behind her back and drew the two tanto sheathed there. Before she could counter with her own attack, Ren had already followed through with his next attack. She had to roll to her left to avoid being hit and, just as she sprung back up to her feet, she had to duck under another powerful swing that almost took her head off. The last attack caused her to slip and her center of balance shifted awkwardly as she tried to keep herself from falling. She didn't think that Ren was going to come quietly but she didn't expect him to attack her so ferociously.

Ren saw an opening and brought his mace down as hard as he could, trying to crack her head open like a walnut. Ren knew that Tsukuyo had played him when she instantly recovered from her stumble and dodged his attack. His hammer awkwardly stuck the cement floor, sending vibrations up the handle of his weapon, causing his hands to sting. The kunoichi lashed out with her right leg and kicked him on the side of his right knee. She heard a satisfying crunch and the big man cried out in pain. As he started to collapse she kicked his hands free of his hammer and sent a straight kick at his head.

Unbelievably, Tsukuyo found herself flying through the air. The blacksmith had grabbed her foot and swung her around like she were a doll. She crashed hard into the wall of the building. Her head was spinning from the impact and she was having trouble catching her breath. There was a sharp pain in her side. She was sure that she had broken a rib or two. She could see two images of Ren rip the kunai she had thrown at him out of his leg and start to limp over towards her. Tsukuyo struggled to get to her feet. Her right leg hurt to stand on so she had to use the wall as support. She couldn't find her tanto as her head started to clear and the two Rens merged into one menacing man, slowly coming towards her, armed with her kunai.

"One more…" Ren's was breathing heavely as he closed the distance between them. "One more whore to add to the list. I will kill you with your own knife, bitch."

The man reached out with his hand, grabbed Tsukuyo by the neck and lifted her off her feet. The mad look in his eyes sent a shiver down her spine as he lifted the kunai threateningly. Tsukuyo knew two things in that moment. That this man was completely insane and that she sure as hell wasn't going to die because of this half-baked lunatic. She grabbed his wrist with one hand and with her other took one of the small kunai she used to pin her hair and, with as much power as she could muster, stabbed it into the hand around her neck.

Ren flinched back in pain, dropping Tsukuyo to the floor. He looked from his hand to her and opened him mouth, "You fu…" A blade emerged from the front of his throat and cut him off. He reached up to grab it, his face showing his disbelief at what had just happened. The blade slowly slid back out of his neck and he fell to the floor dead. Behind him, knelt over Ren's body, Kyoko was wiping his blood off of her wakazashi with his shit.

"So, was it as beautiful as I imagined it would be?" Kyoko asked the half-dazed kunoichi as she sheathed her blades.

"What?" Tsukuyo answered, still not sure what was going on.

"The look on his face when my wakazashi slid through his throat, was it as beautiful as I pictured it being? It's too bad I had to attack him from behind. I so wish I could have seen it myself." Kyoko smiled brightly at Tsukuyo. "I hope we get to talk more again." The woman turned, waved over towards Ryuu and Saotome and yelled as she ran back to them, "He's dead and the blond chick is mostly still alive!"

"Eh, looks like the four of them have trained themselves pretty ragged these years. I would have thought that you could have taken Ren without almost dying, but it seems I was wrong. I should have fought him myself it seems," Gin told her dryly as he knelt by her side. She hadn't noticed him there until just then.

Tsukuyo looked around and it appeared that the Chatoran had surrendered. The few that were still standing were checking to see if any of their comrades still lived. "I don't know what you're talking about Gintoki. If I had let you fight him he would have killed you three times over," she said with an exhausted smile.

"Can you stand up?"

"I don't think so. My ankle hurts and I think I broke a couple of ribs," she answered him.

Gin gently touched her sides and she winced in pain. "Yeah you did. Ryuu offered to give us a ride to the hospital in his carriage." Gin slid his arms under her knees and shoulders and lifted Tsukuyo.

"Gintoki! What are you doing? Put me down," her face flushed in embarrassment and she started to kick her legs in protest.

"Oi, hold still or I'll drop you, dumbass."

Ryuu, Kyoko and her brother watched Gin and Tsukuyo bicker the way out of the warehouse. "Hey dear, they remind me of use back when we were fifteen years old," Kyoko giggled to her husband. "I hope that someday thay can know the happiness we have."

END

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><p>I would like to thank everyone who read this fic. I hope you all enjoyed it.<p> 


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